The payments & online selling stories our desk judged worth your time, written so anyone can follow them.
CarParts.com now offers Klarna at checkout, so shoppers can split a car parts bill into four payments or finance it. Here is what to check first.
Read more: CarParts.com now lets you pay for car parts in installments with KlarnaWEX is teaming with Euclid AI to offer AI helpers to its trucking customers, promising less paperwork and lower costs, though the numbers come from the companies.
Read more: WEX partners with Euclid AI to put AI helpers in trucking fleetsStores like The RealReal, Kohl's and Amazon are limiting AI shopping agents, so a bot you hire to buy things may get stopped at checkout.
Read more: Some Online Stores Are Blocking AI Shopping HelpersWalmart says shoppers can link a personal AI assistant to their account, set purchasing controls, and cancel its access at any time.
Read more: Walmart will let your AI shopping assistant buy with your permissionInsurers are launching policies for robots and self-driving cars, with prices set by the day, the mile or the machine. Standard business cover may not fit.
Read more: Insurers Start Selling Policies for Robots and Self-Driving CarsAnthropic says a China-based studio ran 20-plus dating apps with AI personas and human video callers, so a warm chat or a video call no longer proves a real person.
Read more: One studio used AI to run 4,700 fake dating personasMastercard is bringing a tool to Europe that helps banks tell real purchases from fraud, which could protect shops from losing money on genuine sales.
Read more: Mastercard expands tool to curb false disputes over real purchasesOverwatch Data raised $15 million for AI tools that help banks and payment firms catch attackers who now work faster and cheaper than ever.
Read more: Overwatch Data raises $15 million to help firms fight AI-powered hackersA nonprofit wants big AI developers to report how much they use AI to build new AI, giving federal officials a look at how fast the technology is advancing.
Read more: Proposal would make AI companies reveal if AI helps build new AIThe USDA wants every state to issue SNAP cards with a chip and tap-to-pay, and every SNAP grocery store to accept them. It aims to cut fraud but will cost money.
Read more: Food stamp cards may soon need a chip and tap-to-payLloyds now uses AI helpers to guide staff through debit card fraud cases, and says the tool's decisions are right more than 90 per cent of the time.
Read more: Lloyds bank now uses AI helpers to investigate debit card fraudA new report says shoppers now use card disputes to complain about late packages and unwanted subscriptions, while fraud claims drop to a two-year low.
Read more: More Shoppers Dispute Card Charges Over Late Orders, Not FraudIntuit added fund and grant tracking for nonprofits and inventory tools for manufacturers to its accounting software, which could replace some spreadsheets.
Read more: Intuit adds AI accounting tools for nonprofits and manufacturersPayPal says it is working with Meta and others so AI assistants can pay with PayPal, while pay later volume grew 25% and the company cut over 2,000 jobs.
Read more: PayPal Preps for AI Shopping Agents as Pay Later Use Jumps 25%A survey finds older Americans are far more likely than young adults to say a person tricked by a scammer should absorb the loss, not the bank.
Read more: Older Americans more likely to blame scam victims for their lossesVisa says AI agents can now pay approved business invoices in live pilots, and new spending controls could help businesses cut fraud risk.
Read more: Visa is testing AI helpers that pay business invoices for youMediaPost reports shoppers are warming up to AI assistants that buy for them, starting with small purchases. Here is what to check before you try one.
Read more: Shoppers are letting AI assistants buy small items for themGateway Ticketing Systems has built a way for ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini to check live prices and sell attraction tickets inside a chat, so attractions may need to prepare.
Read more: AI assistants could soon book your attraction tickets for youSalesforce says online stores can now take checkout inside Google's Gemini app and AI Mode in Search, so shoppers may buy without visiting a store's website.
Read more: Salesforce lets shoppers buy inside Google's AI chat toolsBanks have used AI against card fraud for about 20 years. Now AI-made fakes are making attacks harder to spot, so basic security is not enough.
Read more: AI already guards your card payments, and now scammers use it tooPayments company Ant International says AI agents could reshape how money moves, which raises new questions about limits, identity and who pays when things go wrong.
Read more: Ant International says AI helpers could soon handle your paymentsA fraud reporting group warns that scammers use cloned voices and fake celebrity videos to steal savings. A call that sounds real may not be.
Read more: Fake voices and videos are being used to steal savingsA new PYMNTS report says Gen X wants flexible ways to pay and get paid, but not new tools. Cards and physical stores still lead, even with tight budgets.
Read more: Gen X Sticks With Familiar Cards, Even as Money Gets TighterA PYMNTS survey finds nearly all CFOs see openings in a soft economy, but only firms with strong finances can act on them while rivals hold back.
Read more: Weak economy, strong rivals: only well-funded firms can act on bargains
